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A new study has found Australians are turning their backs on Facebook in favour of communicating directly with family, friends and colleagues via messaging apps, with one in three or 3.9 million users of messaging apps having already deleted or actively considering abandoning the social platform.

The popularity of one to one and one to some communication on services such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and Snapchat comes as the number of Australians aged 15-plus using messaging apps increased by 13 per cent to 11.9 million compared to the same time last year.

The switch to more intimate conversations on apps is attributed to the glut of untrusted or ‘fake news’ appearing in users’ timelines and a shift away from sharing updates with a large group of so called ‘friends’, many of whom have little or no connection with the Facebook member.

An online survey of 2,539 people conducted by Pureprofile found 10 per cent (1.2 million) of those using messaging apps have already deleted Facebook, with a further 23 per cent (2.7 million) saying they are contemplating removing it. Read more >